Dinner at the Weasley's
by Freechill
Summary: Dinner at the Weasley's becomes increasingly difficult as he tries to hide his past in front of their kids.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1: The Invitation**

Harry Potter stepped into his office. It was a flavorless room to most people who stopped in with blue and grey walls, a blue table and a red lounge chair. He walked over to his chair.

Of course, there were many nostalgic items in his office as well. On the wall to the right of the door there was a photo of his parents, and to the left of the door there was a painting of Hogwarts.

In a box beside the table there was his old broom, Hedwig's unopened bird food, and some of his old school books.

He heard a knock on the door. "Come in," he said, settling himself in his chair.

A ministry employee entered, looking exhausted. "Can someone else take my shift for Saturday? No one went with me so I was up all night," he said, summoning a sheet that was on Harry's desk that revealed completed work assignments.

Harry nodded. "Of course. I'll find someone for Saturday," Harry answered, leaning back in his lounge chair.

The employee nodded and left the room. Harry shifted through his papers. On his desk were a list of formal complaints written by various witches and wizards, and leads for dark wizard suspects.

He yawned and waved his wand over his desk. The papers floated over the desk dreamily, and he watched them in boredom.

He had worked as Head of the Auror Department for nearly ten years. His son James was going to start his second year at Hogwarts and the school seemed more magnificent than ever after the renovations that had taken place after the Battle of Hogwarts.

Harry felt he should be happy. He sometimes saw Ron and Hermoine, but this summer he had followed a lead on a guy supposedly raising dragons in a mountain 'somewhere in Scotland'. After sending 42 of his employees to go look for scorch marks, eggs, or any other evidence of dragons, they came back with nothing. The closest thing the employees found to a suspect was Hagrid, who Harry automatically dismissed.

In short, his job as Head of the Auror department had grown dull. All the enhanced magical tactics that were implemented during Voldemort's reign had grown irrelevant to an increasingly safer world.

He felt pathetic. He didn't want someone like Voldemort roaming the wizarding world again, but he couldn't help but feel a rush of adrenaline when he got a lead on a guy who was accused of cooking illegal potions in his house, or wizards stealing equipment from the Quidditch World Cup. What he was genuinely concerned with were the so-called "Neo Death Eaters" that were popping up all over the area. At least twenty percent of the new suspects on his desk were "Neo Death Eaters" who were said to be assembling their own organizations.

He sighed and began to shift through the pointless leads. He picked up a pile of papers close to him and frowned. One of the letters was blue rather than yellow, a sign of an invitation. He picked it up curiously. It was a letter from Ron.

_"Hey Mate, want to come over tomorrow for dinner with the family? Of course your whole family is welcome as well. Hermoine wants to try a few new cooking charms on the food this time, so it should be a treat. If you're too busy, we totally understand and can reschedule. Best wishes. Ron."_

Harry laughed at the "If you're too busy" part. "Hedwi-" he called before he caught himself. The bird food was still in the box. It had been there now for just over 20 years, uneaten. It was the only evidence of Hedwig's existence, since he had lost the birdcage while flying on a motorcycle during Voldemort's reign. The Ministry had owls for emergencies so he decided to call one to his office. He often sent messages from these owls, and yet would still shout "hedwig" when he was getting ready to send something.

He wrote a quick reply and tied it to the owl's neck. "Can you fly this to the Weasley House?" He said. The owl flew off instantly, thinking of course it was an emergency.


	2. Ginny's Birthday

**Chapter 2: Ginny's Birthday**

Harry entered Grimmauld place. James, Albus, and Lily came running into the hall and jumped on him.

"Hey guys!" He said, wrapping his arms around them. "Dad, James kept saying he was going to hex me," said Lily, pointing accusingly at James, who vigorously shook his head.

"He's not allowed to use magic outside of school Lily, don't worry," Harry said, stepping further into the house.

Grimmauld place had changed in the years that Harry's family lived in it. Evidence of the Black family had almost entirely been erased from the house, making room for kid's toys, new wallpaper, and various other things.

"Honey, is that you?" a voice said in the living room. "It sure is," Harry answered, walking through the long hall into the living room.

He looked at the sofa and spotted Ginny Potter, looking intently at a floating piece of paper and a quill. "Happy birthday honey," Harry said, leaning over the sofa to hug her.

She smiled and hugged him back, and then looked focused again on her paper. Harry sat next to her.

"Come on, you don't have to work on your birthday," Harry said, trying to grab the floating piece of paper that flew further away from his reach.

Ginny shook her head. "Remember I'm the senior Quidditch correspondent for the Daily Prophet. There are no slow news days when it comes to Quidditch. This article is due tomorrow and then I can have a short summer break," she said, staring intently at the Self-Writing Quill.

"Using another one of George's inventions are you?" He said grinning, looking at the quill.

Ginny laughed. "Weasley's Wizard Wheezes is a fine establishment…and the quills are better than the Quick-Quote Quills used by people like Rita Skeeter. Plus, as family, we get discounts." Ginny said.

Harry nodded. Lily came into the room. "Daddy, can you read me a bedtime story?" Lily asked, tugging on his shirt. Harry nodded. She held up 'The Tales of Beetle the Bard'

OK, I'll be up in five minutes," Harry said. Ginny rubbed her forehead. "It's very hard to look after them here. They need to get out of the house. I was infuriated with James. He stole your old broom and started riding it all over the house," Ginny said irritated.

Harry noticed the spilled flowers and knocked over photos near the fireplace. "Well, he's an aspiring Quidditch player and needs practice. Besides, you used to steal George's broom and ride it when you were six," Harry noted.

Ginny shook her head. "We need for them to do something this weekend before school starts. I don't want all that pent-up energy when he goes to King's Cross station," Ginny said.

Harry nodded. "Well, your brother Ron invited us to his house for dinner tomorrow," Harry said. Ginny laughed. "Our kids would tear up their house, though I'm sure Hermoine could think up a spell to fix it in a second," said Ginny.

She slapped her forehead. "Oh I totally forgot. The kids are seeing Uncle George this weekend," Ginny said.

Harry nodded. "Well, what about you?" Harry asked. Ginny nodded thoughtfully. "We'll drop the kids off and then head to dinner," Ginny said. Harry nodded. "It will be a nice birthday present. Which reminds me…" He said, reaching into his pocket. Ginny smiled as Harry pulled out a box.

Ginny took the box and held it in her hand for a minute. "What could it possibly be this time?" She said, eyeing the relatively small box.

"I promise it's not a diary," Harry said. Ginny laughed. "That was the worst idea for a gift you've had yet. Yet I still have it," Ginny said. Harry frowned. "Really?" Harry asked.

"Yeah, that sheet of paper I'm writing on, it's from the diary. You gave me a diary that never runs out of pages right? One of George's things…it's very useful," she said, pointing to the floating sheet.

"The best part," she said, pulling the diary from under a pillow and ripping out two sheets. "You can number one page, like this," she said, writing "7" on it. "And then you do the same for the other page…" she said, writing "7" on the other sheet. She handed the second sheet to Harry. "And now, I write a message on this sheet…" She said, getting the quill to swoop down and write a message. "And finally say 'The secrets of this diary open itself to the sheet in Harry Potter's hand," She said, tapping the page with her wand.

Suddenly, the message that Ginny had written showed up on Harry's sheet. It read "Wasn't that cool?"

Harry shivered. He dropped the sheet down. Ginny frowned. "Something wrong?" She asked. Harry turned to her.

"I shouldn't have bought you that. It's reminiscent of Tom Riddle's diary," He said. Ginny nodded. "That was a long time ago. I'm OK now. This is my brother's invention, not Voldemort's possession," Ginny said, returning to the box Harry had given her.

She opened it. Her eyes lit up immediately. "How did you get it?" She asked excitedly, taking out a golden snitch.

"It's the first snitch you caught for the Holyhead Harpies," Harry said. She grinned and turned it around in her hand.

"Thank you Harry," she said hugging him. "Look inside," he said, gesturing to the snitch. Ginny held it firmly in her hand, and then when the snitch's flesh memory recognized her, it unlocked. Ginny opened it. It was a flyable toy car. She reached for it.

"Don't!" Shouted Harry. Ginny frowned. "It's just the Aviatomobile. One of George's products… What's the problem?" Ginny asked. Harry shook his head. "It's a portkey to the Room of Requirement," he said. Ginny frowned. "Really? Is that even possible? To get past Hogwarts' wall?" Ginny asked. Harry nodded. "I worked it all out. This is the only portkey that will work for the Room of Requirement," he said. Ginny nodded.

"Lots of memories there," Ginny said. She sighed, pointing to the impatient looking quill. "Anyway, I should get back to the article," she said, focusing intently on the sheet of paper again.

Harry hugged her goodnight. "Happy birthday," he said, before he went upstairs to read to Lily.


	3. Scar from the Past

**Chapter 3: Scar from the Past**

The next morning Ginny made breakfast for the kids while Harry read the Daily Prophet for any news on dark wizards.

"Dad, who's Hedwig?" Albus Potter asked. Harry frowned. "Where did you hear about Hedwig?" Harry asked, putting down his Daily Prophet. "Last week you and mom were talking about owls, and you said you wish you had Hedwig. Was he an owl?" Albus asked. Harry nodded.

"He was my favorite owl. You-know-who killed him," Harry said simply, returning to his paper. Albus frowned. "Was you-know-who real or just someone you made up?" Albus asked.

"That's enough," Ginny said, putting a plate in front of Albus. "Dad has told you many times about You-Know-Who. He was a horrible wizard who you no longer have to worry about," she said, eyeing him sternly as if it was more of a command than a reassurance.

"But-" Albus started to say, but Ginny shook her head fiercely and sat down with her food.

Harry had told his kids stories of the wizard who tried to kill him and succeeded in killing his parents. It wasn't a story that was very easy to hide, and Harry decided it was better for his kids to know than to have a bunch of swimming questions from the remnants of Voldemort's reign.

While he tried to forget about Voldemort, the Neo-Death Eaters were in the Daily Prophet every day, and occasional rumors that Voldemort had another way back to life had to be addressed by him as the head of the Auror Department.

Of course, he didn't go into detail. Ginny had made sure that her obsession with Voldemort's diary in Harry's second year was never told to their children. However, stories Harry told about times when he fought You-Know-Who were told to make Harry look more like a hero to his kids.

"Finish up, so we can head over to George's house," Ginny said. James frowned. "Why does he live in his own joke shop?" He asked. "He has an extension charm in the back room which gives them a three bedroom house. You guys will be sleeping in the third bedroom," Ginny said.

James sighed loudly. "I have to share a room with Lily AND Albus?" he asked annoyed.

Ginny nodded. "Where will you sleep?" Lily asked. Ginny shook her head. "Daddy and I are going to visit uncle Ron for dinner with his family, and on Monday we'll come pick you guys up," Ginny said.

Once they had finished with breakfast Ginny led the kids outside and they got into a car.

"Why are you and dad so obsessed with muggle stuff?" James asked, looking over the car awkwardly before stepping inside.

Ginny raised her eyebrows. "Why do you ask? You've never wondered before," Ginny said, getting into the driver's seat.

"It's just…couldn't we use the Floo powder above the fireplace? Or brooms even?" James asked, shifting himself uncomfortably in the car. Ginny sighed.

"Uncle George has gotten a couple of robberies lately, so he decided to turn off the Floo network. And you know brooms are not an option, the Statute of Secrecy is still in place," Ginny said, taking her car keys out of her pocket.

Harry leaned down and kissed Ginny goodbye. He then hugged his kids. "Have a good weekend!" Harry said.

Lily smiled and waved. James crossed his arms, and then waved one of them over the window. It tinted slightly enough to hide his face. He was about to close the door all the way when Harry held it with his wand.

"Is something troubling you?" Harry asked. James sighed. "Seth Jenner said muggle lovers are meant to die," James said. Harry laughed. "That slytherin in your year? Don't listen to him. Weasley's Wizard Wheezes has muggle stuff, because your grandfather Arthur loves it. He's doing fine, he hasn't died," Harry said.

James shook his head. "He said a group of people are going to wipe out the muggle lovers once and for all," James said, somewhat nervously. Ginny frowned. "A group of people? What sort of group?" Ginny asked. Harry felt he already knew James' answer.

"Neo death eaters," James said, looking hard at his father to see his reaction. Harry stood silently for a moment. His wand hand was shaking a bit, but then he nodded calmly. "I suspect Seth's father is one of them, but remember, I'm the head of the Auror Department, you're safe. Don't listen to someone like Seth," Harry said, dropping his wand. James looked at Harry for a moment, trying to catch any sign that his father was lying to him.

"Have a good weekend!" Harry said again, only this time he sounded more on edge. He closed the door for James and kissed Ginny one last time. After a moment she drove off and Harry's smile faded.

"It's just…couldn't we use the Floo powder above the fireplace? Or brooms even?" James asked, shifting himself uncomfortably in the car. Ginny sighed.

"Uncle George has gotten a couple of robberies lately, so he decided to turn off the Floo network. And you know brooms are not an option, the Statute of Secrecy is still in place," Ginny said, taking her car keys out of her pocket.

Harry leaned down and kissed Ginny goodbye. He then hugged his kids. "Have a good weekend!" Harry said.

Lily smiled and waved. James crossed his arms, and then waved one of them over the window. It tinted slightly enough to hide his face. He was about to close the door all the way when Harry held it with his wand.

"Is something troubling you?" Harry asked. James sighed. "Seth Jenner said muggle lovers are meant to die," James said. Harry laughed. "That slytherin in your year? Don't listen to him. Weasley's Wizard Wheezes has muggle stuff, because your grandfather Arthur loves it. He's doing fine, he hasn't died," Harry said.

James shook his head. "He said a group of people are going to wipe out the muggle lovers once and for all," James said, somewhat nervously. Ginny frowned. "A group of people? What sort of group?" Ginny asked. Harry felt he already knew James' answer.

"Neo death eaters," James said, looking hard at his father to see his reaction. Harry stood silently for a moment. His wand hand was shaking a bit, but then he nodded calmly. "I suspect Seth's father is one of them, but remember, I'm the head of the Auror Department, you're safe. Don't listen to someone like Seth," Harry said, dropping his wand. James looked at Harry for a moment, trying to catch any sign that his father was lying to him.

"Have a good weekend!" Harry said again, only this time he sounded more on edge. He closed the door for James and kissed Ginny one last time. After a moment she drove off and Harry's smile faded.


End file.
